U.S. patent number 11,368,618 [Application Number 16/810,140] was granted by the patent office on 2022-06-21 for image capturing device, image capturing method and recording medium.
This patent grant is currently assigned to CASIO COMPUTER CO., LTD.. The grantee listed for this patent is CASIO COMPUTER CO., LTD.. Invention is credited to Shota Nakahara.
United States Patent |
11,368,618 |
Nakahara |
June 21, 2022 |
Image capturing device, image capturing method and recording
medium
Abstract
An image capturing device includes a housing and a processor.
The processor is configured to determine whether a state of
movement of the housing relative to an observation target is either
a first state or a second state, and perform a control based on the
state of the movement of the housing to cause change in electric
energy for drive of the image capturing device.
Inventors: |
Nakahara; Shota (Hamura,
JP) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
CASIO COMPUTER CO., LTD. |
Tokyo |
N/A |
JP |
|
|
Assignee: |
CASIO COMPUTER CO., LTD.
(Tokyo, JP)
|
Family
ID: |
1000006384687 |
Appl.
No.: |
16/810,140 |
Filed: |
March 5, 2020 |
Prior Publication Data
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|
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Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
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US 20200304716 A1 |
Sep 24, 2020 |
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Foreign Application Priority Data
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Mar 20, 2019 [JP] |
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JP2019-052245 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
H04N
5/23274 (20130101); H04N 5/232411 (20180801); H04N
5/23245 (20130101); H04N 5/23258 (20130101); G06T
2207/30088 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
H04N
5/232 (20060101) |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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May 2011 |
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105637856 |
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Jun 2016 |
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CN |
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2005079731 |
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Mar 2005 |
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JP |
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2007025212 |
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Feb 2007 |
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JP |
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2007116208 |
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May 2007 |
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JP |
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2008172507 |
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Jul 2008 |
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JP |
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2013022229 |
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Feb 2013 |
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JP |
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2015127771 |
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Jul 2015 |
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JP |
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2018042139 |
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Mar 2018 |
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JP |
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2017047112 |
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Mar 2017 |
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WO |
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Other References
Chinese Office Action (and English language translation thereof)
dated Apr. 2, 2021, issued in counterpart Chinese Application No.
202010164018.0. cited by applicant .
Japanese Office Action dated May 21, 2021 (and English translation
thereof) issued in Japanese Application No. 2019-052245. cited by
applicant.
|
Primary Examiner: Villecco; John
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Holtz, Holtz & Volek PC
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An image capturing device comprising: a housing; an abutment
that abuts against an observation target, the abutment comprising a
portion of a first outer surface of the housing which opposes the
observation target, and the abutment surrounding an observation
hole which is formed in the housing; a pressure sensor that detects
an index indicating a strength at which the abutment contacts the
observation target, the pressure sensor comprising first and second
pressure sensors disposed on the first outer surface of the housing
so as to oppose each other with the observation hole therebetween;
and a processor configured to: obtain first and second pressure
values respectively detected by the first and second pressure
sensors; determine, based on a comparison between each of the first
and second pressure values and a reference value, whether a state
of movement of the housing relative to the observation target is
either a first state or a second state, and perform control based
on the state of the movement of the housing to cause a change in
electric energy for drive of the image capturing device.
2. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein when
the state of the movement of the housing is determined to be the
second state, the processor decreases the electric energy by
causing the image capturing device to capture an image at a low
frame rate as compared with a frame rate at which the image is
captured when the state of the movement of the housing is
determined to be the first state.
3. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein when
the state of the movement of the housing is determined to be the
first state, the processor decreases the electric energy by causing
the image capturing device to capture an image at a low resolution
as compared with a resolution at which the image is captured when
the state of the movement of the housing is determined to be the
second state.
4. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein when
the state of the movement of the housing is determined to be the
second state, the processor decreases the electric energy by
causing the image capturing device to capture an image at a low
frame rate and a high resolution as compared with a frame rate and
resolution at which the image is captured when the state of the
movement of the housing is determined to be the first state.
5. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the
processor determines that the state of the movement of the housing
is the second state when both of the first and second pressure
values are equal to or greater than the reference value.
6. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein: the
observation target comprises skin, and the processor determines the
state of the movement of the housing relative to the skin.
7. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the
image capturing device captures an image of the observation target
while contacting the observation target.
8. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the
processor determines that the state of the movement of the housing
is the first state when at least one of the first and second
pressure values is less than the reference value.
9. The image capturing device according to claim 1, wherein the
first state is a state in which at least one of the first and
second pressure values is less than the reference value, and the
second state is a state in which both of the first and second
pressure values are at least equal to the reference value.
10. The image capturing device according to claim 1, further
comprising an image capturer, wherein the image capturer is
provided in an interior of the housing at a position opposite the
observation hole so as to be exposed to an exterior of the housing
via the observation hole and to capture an image of the observation
target through the observation hole.
11. The image capturing device according to claim 10, further
comprising an illuminator, wherein the illuminator is provided on
an interior of the housing at a position whereby the illuminator
irradiates the observation target with light through the
observation hole.
12. An image capturing method for an image capturing device, the
image capturing device including (i) a housing, (ii) an abutment
comprising a portion of a first outer surface of the housing which
opposes an observation target, the abutment surrounding an
observation hole which is formed in the housing, and (iii) a
pressure sensor comprising first and second pressure sensors
disposed on the first outer surface of the housing so as to oppose
each other with the observation hole therebetween, and the method
comprising: abutting the abutment against the observation target so
as to contact the observation target; obtaining first and second
pressure values respectively detected by the first and second
pressure sensors so as to detect, by the pressure sensor, an index
indicating a strength at which the abutment contacts the
observation target; determining, based on a comparison between each
of the first and second pressure values and a reference value,
whether a state of movement of the housing relative to the
observation target is either a first state or a second state; and
performing control based on the state of the movement of the
housing to cause a change in electric energy for drive of the image
capturing device.
13. The image capturing method according to claim 12, wherein when
the state of the movement of the housing is determined to be the
second state, the performing of the control includes decreasing the
electric energy by causing the image capturing device to capture an
image at a low frame rate as compared with a frame rate at which
the image is captured when the state of the movement of the housing
is determined to be the first state.
14. The image capturing method according to claim 12, wherein when
the state of the movement of the housing is determined to be the
first state, the performing of the control includes decreasing the
electric energy by causing the image capturing device to capture an
image at a low resolution as compared with a resolution at which
the image is captured when it is determined that the state of the
movement of the housing is determined to be the second state.
15. A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a
program thereon, the program being executable by a computer to
control an image capturing device including (i) a housing, (ii) an
abutment that abuts against an observation target, the abutment
comprising a portion of a first outer surface of the housing which
opposes an observation target, and the abutment surrounding an
observation hole which is formed in the housing, and (iii) a
pressure sensor comprising first and second pressure sensors
disposed on the first outer surface of the housing so as to oppose
each other with the observation hole therebetween, and the program
being executable by the computer to control the computer to perform
processes comprising: obtaining first and second pressure values
respectively detected by the first and second pressure sensors so
as to detect, by the pressure sensor, an index indicating a
strength at which the abutment contacts the observation target;
determining, based on a comparison between each of the first and
second pressure values and a reference value, whether a state of
movement of the housing relative to the observation target is
either a first state or a second state; and performing control
based on the state of the movement of the housing to cause a change
in electric energy for drive of the image capturing device.
16. The recording medium according to claim 15, wherein the program
controls the computer to, when the state of the movement of the
housing is determined to be the second state, decrease the electric
energy by causing the image capturing device to capture an image at
a low frame rate as compared with a frame rate at which the image
is captured when the state of the movement of the housing is
determined to be the first state.
17. The recording medium according to claim 15, wherein the program
controls the computer to, when the state of the movement of the
housing is determined to be the first state, decrease the electric
energy by causing the image capturing device to capture an image at
a low resolution as compared with a resolution at which the image
is captured when the state of the movement of the housing is
determined to be the second state.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application claims the benefit of Japanese Patent Application
No. 2019-52245, filed on Mar. 20, 2019, the entire disclosure of
which is incorporated by reference herein.
FIELD
The present disclosure relates to an image capturing device, an
image capturing method, and a recording medium.
BACKGROUND
Many types of cosmetics for various skin types are on market.
Consumers can select cosmetics suitable for their own skin types
from many types of cosmetics. However, without knowledge of their
own skin types, selecting the suitable cosmetics might be
difficult. Thus some cosmetic shops use a device for skin type
diagnosis to help provide cosmetics suitable for skin types.
Unexamined Japanese Patent Application Kokai Publication No.
2007-25212 describes a magnified image capturing device that
captures an image by magnifying an image of a customer's skin, for
example in a case of determining a cosmetic suitable for skin
conditions of the customer. This magnified image capturing device
switches an optical magnification between a low magnification and a
high magnification by moving a lens included in imaging optics
between a low-magnification observing position and a
high-magnification observing position along an imaging optical
axis.
SUMMARY
According to one aspect of the present disclosure, an image
capturing device includes a housing; and a processor configured to
determine whether a state of movement of the housing relative to an
observation target is either a first state or a second state, and
perform a control based on the state of the movement of the housing
to cause change in electric energy for drive of the image capturing
device.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
A more complete understanding of this application can be obtained
when the following detailed description is considered in
conjunction with the following drawings, in which:
FIG. 1 is a drawing illustrating an image capturing device
according to an Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure, and a
terminal device;
FIG. 2 is a drawing illustrating the image capturing device
according to Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure;
FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line FIG. 4 is a block
diagram illustrating a configuration of the image capturing device
according to Embodiment 1 of the present disclosure;
FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of a
terminal device according to Embodiment 1 of the present
disclosure;
FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating an image capturing process
executed by the image capturing device according to Embodiment 1 of
the present disclosure;
FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration of an image
capturing device according to Embodiment 2 of the present
disclosure;
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the image capturing
device according to Embodiment 2 of the present disclosure;
FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an image capturing
device according to a variation of the present disclosure;
FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an image capturing
device according to a variation of the present disclosure; and
FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view illustrating an image capturing
device according to a variation of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
An image capturing device according to embodiments of the present
disclosure is described hereinafter with reference to the
drawings.
Embodiment 1
As illustrated in FIG. 1, an image capturing device 100 according
to the present embodiment captures an image by magnifying an image
of an observation target R, such as a surface of skin, and
transmits data indicating the captured image to a terminal device
200. Examples of the terminal device 200 include a smartphone and a
tablet personal computer (PC), with a display 230, and the terminal
device 200 displays the image transmitted by the image capturing
device 100 on the display 230. The image capturing device 100 and
the terminal device 200 are communicatively connected to each other
via wiring connection or wireless connection. The image capturing
device 100 and the terminal device 200 constitute an image
capturing system 1.
As illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3, the image capturing device 100
includes a housing 101, an image capturer 120, a first pressure
sensor 130A and a second pressure sensor 130B, an illuminator 140,
and an indicator 150.
The housing 101 has an observation hole 102 for observation of an
observation target R, and contains the image capturer 120 and the
illuminator 140. The observation hole 102 is an opening formed in
the housing 101 so as to enable capturing of an image of the
observation target R, with the image capturer 120 exposed to an
exterior of the housing 101. A portion surrounding the observation
hole 102 is referred to as an abutment 103. The abutment 103 is for
keeping a constant distance between the image capturer 120 and the
observation target R. With the abutment 103 of the housing 101
abutting against the observation target R, the distance between the
image capturer 120 and the observation target is kept constant, and
the image capturer 120 can capture an image of the observation
target R through the observation hole 102. The observation hole 102
may be an opening, and may be provided with a transparent plate
such as a glass plate or a transparent resin plate.
The image capturer 120 includes a lens, an image sensor such as a
complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) image sensor or the
like, and an image processor 121. The image capturer 120 captures
an image of the observation target R through the observation hole
102, and outputs data indicating the captured image to a controller
(processor) 110. The image capturer 120 is controlled by the
controller 110 to set an image capturing mode to a first image
capturing mode for capturing at a first frame rate or a second
image capturing mode for capturing at a second frame rate that is
lower than the first frame rate. The image processor 121 processes
pre-process data acquired from the image sensor, and generates data
indicating an image. For example, the first frame rate is 60 frames
per second (fps) and the second frame rate is 30 fps. At the first
frame rate, a readout time is reduced by sparse scanning, instead
of reading of all pixels of the image sensor. Thus the image
captured in the first image capturing mode has a resolution lower
than that of the image captured in the second image capturing mode.
For example, the number of pixels of the image captured in the
first image capturing mode is 1 mega pixel (MP), and the number of
pixels of the image captured in the second image capturing mode is
2 MP. Power supplied to the image capturer 120 is consumed by the
image sensor, such as the CMOS image sensor, and the image
processor 121. The amount of energy consumption is more affected by
the frame rate than by the resolution. Thus the amount of energy
consumption in the second image capturing mode at a lower frame
rate is smaller than the amount of energy consumption in the first
image capturing mode.
The first pressure sensor 130A and the second pressure sensor 130B
are sensors for measuring a pressure in a well-known manner, such
as a capacitance type or a strain gauge type of method. When the
image capturing device 100 is placed on the observation target R,
the first and second pressure sensors 130A and 130B detect a
magnitude of pressure applied to the observation target R by the
image capturing device 100, and converts the detected magnitude of
pressure into an electrical signal. The first and second pressure
sensors 130A and 130B thus function as a measurer for measuring an
index indicating a strength at which the image capturing device 100
contacts the observation target R.
The first and second pressure sensors 130A and 130B are disposed
facing each other with the observation hole 102 therebetween in a
surrounding area of the observation hole 102. Disposing the first
and second pressure sensors 130A and 130B in the surrounding area
of the observation hole 102 enables precise measurement of the
pressure applied to the area near the observation hole 102. In
addition, disposing the first and second pressure sensors 130A and
130B facing each other with the observation hole 102 therebetween
enables detection of misalignment, for example when the image
capturing device is placed obliquely relative to the observation
target R. This enables detection of whether the image capturing
device 100 is properly placed on the observation target R.
The illuminator 140 includes a light emitting device such as a
light emitting diode (LED), and irradiates the observation target R
with light through the observation hole 102.
The indicator 150 is disposed in the housing 101, and notifies a
user of the image capturing mode. The indicator 150 includes a
light emitting device such as an LED. The indicator 150 emits light
in yellow in the first image capturing mode, and emits light in
green in the second image capturing mode.
As illustrated in FIG. 4, the image capturing device 100 includes,
as electrical components, the controller 110 and a communicator
160, in addition to the aforementioned components, that is, the
image capturer 120, the first and second pressure sensors 130A and
130B, the illuminator 140, and the indicator 150.
The controller 110 includes a central processing unit (CPU), a read
only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), and the like. The
controller 110 functions as an acquirer 111, a determiner 112, an
image capturing controller 113, and a notifier 114 by retrieving
programs stored in the ROM and executing the retrieved programs in
the RAM.
The acquirer 111 acquires the index indicating the strength at
which the image capturing device 100 contacts the observation
target R. The strength at which the image capturing device 100
contacts the observation target R means a strength of a force with
which a user presses the image capturing device 100 against the
observation target when placing the image capturing device 100 on
the observation target R. The acquirer 111 acquires, as the index
indicating such a strength of contact, a first pressure value
measured by the first pressure sensor 130A and a second pressure
value measured by the second pressure sensor 130B. The pressure
values measured by the first and second pressure sensors 130A and
130B are zero when the image capturing device 100 does not contact
the observation target R, and increase as the strength of contact
increases.
The determiner 112 determines whether the index acquired by the
acquirer 111 is equal to or greater than a predetermined reference.
Moving the image capturing device 100 is not easy, with the image
capturing device 100 pressed against the observation target R. Thus
the determiner 112 functions as determination means for
determining, by determining whether the index is equal to or
greater than the predetermined reference, whether the image
capturer 120 is in a first state in which the image capturer 120 is
easily movable relative to the observation target R or in a second
state in which the image capturer 120 is not easily movable
relative to the observation target R. When the index acquired by
the acquirer 111 is equal to or greater than the predetermined
reference, the state corresponds to the second state in which the
image capturer 120 is not easily movable relative to the
observation target R. Specifically, the determiner 112 determines
whether the first pressure value measured by the first pressure
sensor 130A and the second pressure value measured by the second
pressure sensor 130B are each equal to or greater than the
reference. The user looks for an image capturing position while
moving the image capturing device 100 without pressing against the
observation target R, while looking at images captured by the image
capturing device 100. When finding the image capturing position,
the user presses the image capturing device 100 against the
observation target R and captures an image of the observation
target R. The predetermined reference is a value that enables
determination of states as to whether the user looks for the image
capturing position or whether the user observes the observation
target R after looking for the image capturing position.
When the index acquired by the acquirer 111 is less than the
predetermined reference, the image capturing controller 113 sets
the image capturer 120 to capture an image in the first image
capturing mode. When the index is equal to or greater than the
predetermined reference, the image capturing controller 113 sets
the image capturer 120 to capture an image in the second image
capturing mode. The image capturing controller 113 acquires data
indicating the image captured by the image capturer 120, and
transmits the data indicating the image to the terminal device 200
via the communicator 160. Specifically, the image capturing
controller 113 sets the image capturer 120 to capture an image in
the first image capturing mode when a determination is made that at
least one of the first pressure value measured by the first
pressure sensor 130A or the second pressure value measured by the
second pressure sensor 130B is less than the reference. The image
capturing controller 113 sets the image capturer 120 to capture an
image in the second image capturing mode when the first pressure
value measured by the first pressure sensor 130A and the second
pressure value measured by the second pressure sensor 130B are both
equal to or greater than the reference.
When the image is being captured in the first image capturing mode,
the notifier 114 lets the indicator 150 lit in yellow, and when the
image is being captured in the second image capturing mode, the
notifier 114 lets the indicator 150 lit in green. The user can know
whether the image is being captured in the first image capturing
mode or the second image capturing mode. When the image capturing
device 100 is placed obliquely relative to the observation target R
or when the force of pressing the image capturing device 100
against the observation target R is weak, at least one of the first
pressure value or the second pressure value is less than the
reference, and the image is captured in the first image capturing
mode. The notifier 114 notifies the user of the image being
captured in the first image capturing mode because of the weak
pressing force or the oblique placement. The notifier 114 can
thereby prompt the user to apply a stronger pressing force or to
place the image capturing device 100 on the observation target R
properly.
The communicator 160 transmits the data indicating the image to the
terminal device 200. The communicator 160 includes a wireless
communication module, such as a wireless local area network (LAN),
Bluetooth (registered trademark), or the like.
As illustrated in FIG. 5, the terminal device 200 includes a
controller 210, a communicator 220, a display 230, and an operation
receiver 240.
The controller 210 includes the CPU, the ROM, and the RAM. The
controller 210 functions as an image acquirer 211 and a display
controller 212 by retrieving programs store in the ROM and
executing the retrieved programs in the RAM.
The image acquirer 211 acquires, via the communicator 220, the data
indicating the image transmitted by the image capturing device 100,
and stores the data in the RAM.
The display controller 212 displays, in the display 230, the image
included in the data indicating the image acquired by the image
acquirer 211.
The communicator 220 receives data indicating the image transmitted
by the image capturing device 100. Similarly to the aforementioned
communicator 160, the communicator 220 includes the wireless
communication module such as the wireless LAN, Bluetooth
(registered trademark), or the like.
The display 230 displays the captured image or an image necessary
for manipulation, and includes a liquid crystal display (LCD).
The operation receiver 240 receives the start and stop of
processing upon input of a user. The operation receiver 240 and the
display 230 constitute a touch panel display device.
Next, an image capturing process executed by the image capturing
device 100 is described for an example in which the data indicating
the image captured by the image capturing device 100 having the
aforementioned configuration is transmitted to the terminal device
200 and the captured image is displayed on the display 230 of the
terminal device 200.
The image capturing device 100 starts the image capturing process
illustrated in FIG. 6, in response to an instruction to start the
process provided by a user. The terminal device 200 receives the
data indicating the image transmitted by the image capturing device
100 in response to the instruction to start the process provided by
the user, and starts the process to display the image included in
the received data indicating the image. The image capturing process
executed by the image capturing device 100 is described using a
flow chart.
Upon start of the image capturing process, the acquirer 111
acquires a first pressure value measured by the first pressure
sensor 130A and a second pressure value measured by the second
pressure sensor 130B (Step S101). Next, the determiner 112
determines whether the pressure value is equal to or greater than a
reference (Step S102). Specifically, the determiner 112 determines
whether the first pressure value measured by the first pressure
sensor 130A and the second pressure value measured by the second
pressure sensor 130B are each equal to or greater than the
reference.
When a determination is made that the pressure value is less than
the reference (No in Step S102), the image capturing controller 113
sets the image capturing mode of the image capturer 120 to the
first image capturing mode (Step S103). Here, the determination
that the pressure value is less than the reference includes a
determination that at least one of the first pressure value
measured by the first pressure sensor 130A or the second pressure
value measured by the second pressure sensor 130B is less than the
reference. The first image capturing mode has a frame rate higher
than that of the second image capturing mode, and is a mode
suitable for a case in which an image capturing position in the
observation target R is looked for while the image capturing device
100 is moved. Next, the notifier 114 provides notification of an
image capturing mode (Step S104). Specifically, the notifier 114
provides notification that the indicator 150 is lit in yellow and
the image is being captured in the first image capturing mode.
When a determination is made that the pressure value is equal to or
greater than the reference (Yes in Step S102), the image capturing
controller 113 sets the image capturing mode of the image capturer
120 to the second image capturing mode (Step S108). Here, the
determination that the pressure value is equal to or greater than
the reference includes a determination that both of the first
pressure value measured by the first pressure sensor 130A and the
second pressure value measured by the second pressure sensor 130B
are equal to or greater than the reference. Since the second image
capturing mode has a resolution higher than that of the first image
capturing mode, the image capturing device 100 can capture an image
of the observation target R more definitely. Next, the notifier 114
provides notification of the image capturing mode (Step S104).
Specifically, the notifier 114 provides notification that the
indicator 150 is lit in green and the image is being captured in
the second image capturing mode.
Next, the image capturing controller 113 acquires the data
indicating the image captured by the image capturer 120 (Step
S105). Then the image capturing controller 113 transmits the data
indicating the image to the terminal device 200 via the
communicator 160 (Step S106). The terminal device 200 having
received the data indicating the image displays an image on the
display 230. Next, a determination is made as to whether an end
instruction is received (Step S107). When the end instruction is
not accepted (No in Step S107), the process returns to Step S101,
and Steps S101 to S108 are repeated. When the end instruction is
accepted (Yes in Step S107), the image capturing process is
completed.
As described above, the image capturing device 100 of the present
embodiment, in a first state in which the image capturing device
100 is not pressed against the observation target R, can capture an
image in the first image capturing mode for capturing at a high
frame rate, and in a second state in which the image capturing
device 100 is pressed against the observation target R, the image
capturing device 100 can capture an image in the second image
capturing mode for capturing at a high resolution. Thus even when a
user tries to roughly locate an observation position while moving
the image capturing device 100 greatly relative to the observation
target R, the image capturing device 100 can capture an image at a
high frame rate, thereby achieving a high responsivity of image
acquisition, and can acquire a less-blur image even when the image
capturing device 100 is moving. When the user presses the image
capturing device 100 against the observation target R after
locating the observation position, detailed image can be obtained
since the image is captured in the second image capturing mode for
capturing at a high resolution, which improves convenience to use.
Since the image capturing mode is switched between the first image
capturing mode for capturing at a high frame rate and the second
image capturing mode for capturing at a low frame rate, the image
capturing time at the first image capturing mode with a great
amount of energy consumption is relatively short, which can result
in a reduced amount of energy consumption. This can reduce battery
exhaustion when the image capturing device 100 is a battery-driven
portable device.
Embodiment 2
An image capturing device 300 according to Embodiment 2 further
includes an acceleration sensor 170 and a gyro sensor 180 as
illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, instead of the first pressure sensor
130A and the second pressure sensor 130B included in the image
capturing device 100 according to Embodiment 1. The other
components are the same as those of Embodiment 1. The optical axis
of the image capturer 120 is taken as the Z direction and the
directions perpendicular to the optical axis are the X direction
and the Y direction.
The acceleration sensor 170 is a sensor that measures acceleration
in a well-known manner, such as a piezo-resistive three-axis
acceleration sensor, a capacitance three-axis acceleration sensor,
a thermal three-axis acceleration sensor, or the like. The
acceleration sensor 170 detects acceleration in the X-axis and
Y-axis directions, converts the detected acceleration into an
electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal to the
controller 110. In this way, the acceleration sensor 170 measures
the acceleration that the image capturing device 300
experiences.
The gyro sensor 180 is a sensor that measures angular velocity in a
well-known manner, such as a piezo-resistive gyro sensor, a
capacitance gyro sensor, a piezoelectric gyro sensor, or the like.
The gyro sensor 180 detects angular velocity in the X-axis and
Y-axis directions, converts the detected angular velocity into an
electrical signal, and outputs the electrical signal to the
controller 110. In this way, the acceleration sensor 170 measures
the angular velocity that the image capturing device 300
experiences.
The acquirer 111 acquires indexes indicating absolute values of the
acceleration and the angular velocity of the image capturing device
300. The acceleration includes acceleration components in the
X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis directions that the image capturing
device 300 experiences. The angular velocity includes angular
velocity components obtained by the image capturing device 300
rotating around the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis directions. The
value of the acceleration measured by the acceleration sensor 170
is zero, not considering the effect of acceleration of gravity,
when the image capturing device 300 is stationary in the X-axis,
Y-axis, and Z-axis directions, and the value of the acceleration is
larger when a change in the velocity is greater. The value of the
angular velocity measured by the gyro sensor 180 is zero when the
image capturing device 300 does not rotate around each of the
X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis directions, and the value of the angular
velocity increases in accordance with the rotational speed when the
image capturing device 300 rotates therearound.
The determiner 112 determines whether the index acquired by the
acquirer 111 is less than the predetermined reference. The
determiner 112 thus functions as determination means for determine
whether the image capturer 120 is in a first state in which the
image capturer 120 is moving relative to the observation target 4
or whether the image capturer 120 is in a second state in which the
image capturer 120 does not move. When the index acquired by the
acquirer 111 is less than the predetermined reference, the state
corresponds to the second state in which the image capturer 120
does not move relative to the observation target R. Specifically,
the determiner 112 determines whether the absolute value of the
acceleration measured by the acceleration sensor 170 and the
absolute value of the angular velocity measured by the gyro sensor
180 are each less than the reference. The user looks for an image
capturing position while moving the image capturing device 300,
looking at images captured by the image capturing device 300. While
the user looks for the image capturing position while moving the
image capturing device 300, the acceleration and the angular
velocity increase. When finding the image capturing position, the
user stops moving the image capturing device 300 and captures an
image of the observation target R. The predetermined reference is a
value that enables determination of states as to whether the user
looks for the image capturing position or whether the user observes
the observation target R after looking for the image capturing
position.
When the index acquired by the acquirer 111 is greater than the
predetermined reference, the image capturing controller 113 sets
the image capturer 120 to capture an image in the first image
capturing mode. When the index is equal to or less than the
predetermined reference, the image capturing controller 113 sets
the image capturer 120 to capture an image in the second image
capturing mode. Specifically, the image capturing controller 113
sets the image capturer 120 to capture an image in the first image
capturing mode when a determination is made that at least one of
the absolute value of the acceleration measured by the acceleration
sensor 170 or the absolute value of the angular velocity measured
by the gyro sensor 180 is greater than the reference. The image
capturing controller 113 sets the image capturer 120 to capture an
image in the second image capturing mode when the absolute value of
the acceleration measured by the acceleration sensor 170 and the
absolute value of the angular velocity measured by the gyro sensor
180 are both equal to or less than the reference.
As described above, the image capturing device 300 of Embodiment 2,
when the determination is made that one of the absolute values of
the acceleration and the angular velocity is greater than the
reference, can determine that the state is the first state in which
the user is looking for the image capturing position and capture an
image in the first image capturing mode for capturing at a high
frame rate, and when the absolute values of the acceleration and
the angular velocity are both equal to or less than the reference
or when the state is the second state of no movement relative to
the observation position, the image capturing device 300 can
capture an image in the second image capturing mode for capturing
at a high resolution. Thus even when a user tries to roughly locate
an observation position while moving the image capturing device 300
greatly relative to the observation target R, the image capturing
device 300 can capture an image at a high frame rate, thereby
achieving a high responsivity of image acquisition, and can acquire
a less-blur image even when the image capturing device 300 is
moving greatly. When the user does not move the image capturing
device 300 relative to the observation target R after locating the
observation position, detailed image can be obtained since the
image is captured in the second image capturing mode for capturing
at a high resolution, which improves convenience to use. Since the
image capturing mode is switched between the first image capturing
mode for capturing at a high frame rate and the second image
capturing mode for capturing at a low frame rate, the image
capturing time at the first image capturing mode with a great
amount of energy consumption is relatively short, which can result
in a reduced amount of energy consumption. This can reduce battery
exhaustion when the image capturing device 300 is a battery-driven
portable device.
Variations
The aforementioned embodiments describe examples of image capturing
by the image capturing devices 100 and 300 in the first image
capturing mode for capturing at a low resolution and a high frame
rate and in the second image capturing mode for capturing at a high
resolution at a low frame rate. The frame rate in the first image
capturing mode may be higher than that in the second image
capturing mode, and the resolutions may be the same. Even in this
case, since the image is captured at a low frame rate in the second
image capturing mode, a time interval for image capturing per one
frame is relatively long, noise is reduced, and detailed image can
be obtained. Since the image capturing mode is switched between the
first image capturing mode for capturing at a high frame rate and
the second image capturing mode for capturing at a low frame rate,
the image capturing time at the first image capturing mode with a
great amount of energy consumption is relatively short, which can
result in a reduced amount of energy consumption.
The aforementioned embodiments describe examples of image capturing
by the image capturing devices 100 and 300 in the first image
capturing mode and the second image capturing mode. The image
capturing device 100 may capture an image in the third image
capturing mode for capturing at a frame rate lower than the second
image capturing mode, in addition to the first image capturing mode
and the second image capturing mode. In this case, for example, the
image capturing device 100 captures an image in the first image
capturing mode when the pressure value is less than a first
reference, captures an image in the second image capturing mode
when the pressure value is equal to or less than the first
reference and is less than a second reference higher than the first
reference, and captures an image in the third image capturing mode
when the pressure value is equal to or greater than the second
reference. This can provide phased change of the frame rate and can
acquire a less-blur image in accordance with movement of the image
capturing device 100. The finely switching of the frame rate
relatively shortens the image capturing time at the first image
capturing mode with a great amount of energy consumption, which can
result in a reduced amount of energy consumption. The image
capturing device 100 may increase the frame rate steplessly as the
pressure value increases. The image capturing device 300 may
increase the frame rate steplessly as the absolute values of the
acceleration and the angular velocity decrease.
The aforementioned embodiments describe examples of image capturing
by the image capturing devices 100 and 300 in the first image
capturing mode for capturing at a high frame rate and in the second
image capturing mode for capturing at a low frame rate. The image
capturing devices 100 and 300 may use the same frame rate and may
capture an image at a low resolution in the first image capturing
mode and at a high resolution in the second image capturing mode.
Even in this case, detailed image can be obtained since the image
is captured at a high resolution in the second image capturing mode
that is higher than that in the first image capturing mode. Since
the first image capturing mode uses sparse scanning, the first
image capturing mode has an amount of energy consumption that is
relatively smaller than that of the second image capturing mode.
Since the image capturing mode is switched between the second image
capturing mode and the first image capturing mode in which an
amount of energy consumption is relatively small, the image
capturing time at the second image capturing mode with a great
amount of energy consumption is relatively short, which can result
in a reduced amount of energy consumption.
The aforementioned embodiments describe an example in which the
image capturing device 300 includes the acceleration sensor 170 and
the gyro sensor 180. The image capturing device 300 may a travel
distance sensor 190 that detects an amount of movement relative to
the observation target R, as illustrated in FIG. 9. The travel
distance sensor 190 includes a light source, such as a LED or a
laser diode (LD), and an optical sensor that detects light
reflected on the observation target R. The travel distance sensor
190 detects an amount of movement of the image capturing device 300
relative to the observation target R in the X-axis and Y-axis
directions. The travel distance sensor 190 is disposed at the
abutment 103, and detects the travel distance by irradiating the
observation target R with light from the light source to detect the
light reflected on the observation target R with the optical
sensor. In this case, when the travel distance per unit time is
equal to or less than the reference, the determiner 112 determines
that the image capturer 120 is in a state in which the image
capturer 120 does not move relative to the observation target R.
The image capturing device 300 may include at least any one of the
acceleration sensor 170, the gyro sensor 180, or the travel
distance sensor 190. Such inclusion of any one of the acceleration
sensor 170, the gyro sensor 180, or the travel distance sensor 190
enables the determiner 112 to determine whether the image capturer
120 is in a state in which the image capturer 120 is moving
relative to the observation target R.
The aforementioned embodiments describe examples of image capturing
by the image capturing devices 100 and 300 in the first image
capturing mode for capturing at a high frame rate and in the second
image capturing mode for capturing at a lower frame rate. It is
sufficient that the image capturing devices 100 and 300 can capture
a detailed image of the observation target R when the user does not
move the image capturing devices 100 and 300 relative to the
observation target R. For example, the image capturing device 400
may include an image capturer 123 that includes a zoom lens 122 as
illustrated in FIG. 10. In this case, a magnification of the zoom
lens 122 is set to a low level in the first image capturing mode,
and is set to a high level in the second image capturing mode. For
example, the magnification of the zoom lens 122 is set to 15 in the
first image capturing mode, and is set to 30 in the second image
capturing mode. Such settings provide image capturing at a low
magnification when a user tries to roughly locate an observation
position while moving the image capturing device 100 greatly
relative to the observation target R, thereby enabling observation
of an image with a wide coverage and easy finding of the
observation position. A detailed image can be obtained since after
the user locates the observation position, the image is captured in
the second image capturing mode for capturing at a high
magnification.
An image capturing device 400 may change the magnification of the
image capturer 123 in a stepped manner of three or more steps or
steplessly in accordance with an amount of movement of the image
capturing device 400 relative to the observation target R This
enables observation using the image with a low magnification and
easy finding of the observation position when the user is moving
the image capturing device 400 greatly relative to the observation
target R. The smaller amount of movement, the magnification
gradually increases, thereby enabling easy finding of the
observation position.
The aforementioned embodiments describe a case that the image
capturing device 100 includes the first pressure sensor 130A and
the second pressure sensor 130B. The image capturing device 100 may
include at least one pressure sensor, and may include three or more
pressure sensors. With a single pressure sensor included, a
measurement of the contact strength can be obtained. This can make
the structure of the device simple. When three or more sensors are
included, a more precise determination can be made as to whether
the device is oriented properly.
The aforementioned embodiments describe an example in which the
determiner 112 of the image capturing device 100 determines whether
pressure values measured by the first and second pressure sensors
130A and 130B are equal to or more than the reference. The
determiner 112 may determine, based on whether the pressure values
measured by the first and second pressure sensors 130A and 130B are
zero, whether the abutment 103 of the image capturing device 100
contacts the observation target R. In this case, the image
capturing controller 113 sets the image capturer 120 to capture an
image at the first image capturing mode when a determination is
made that the abutment 103 does not contact the observation target
R, and sets the image capturer 120 to set an image in the second
image capturing mode when a determination is made that the abutment
103 contacts the observation target R. The determiner 112 may
determine whether the abutment 103 of the image capturing device
100 contacts the observation target R, in addition to whether the
pressure value is equal to or more than the reference. In this
case, when a determination is made based on the determiner 112 that
the abutment 103 of the image capturing device 100 does not contact
the observation target R, the image capturing controller 113 stops
power supply to the image capturer 120 or changes the mode of the
image capturer 120 to a sleep mode. The sleep mode is a mode in
which minimal power is supplied so as to achieve a swift transition
to the image capturing mode again. When the user is not capturing
an image of the observation target R, it is assumed that the user
is to put the image capturing device 100, for example on a desk, to
avoid contact between the abutment 103 of the image capturing
device 100 and the observation target R. When the abutment 103 does
not contact with the observation target R, it is assumed that the
image capturing device 100 is not being used. Thus when the image
capturing device 100 is not used, the power supply to the image
capturer 120 is stopped or the mode of the image capturer 120 is
changed to the sleep mode, which can result in a reduced amount of
energy consumption.
An image capturing device 500 may include first and second contact
sensors 104A and 104B as illustrated in FIG. 11, instead of the
first and second pressure sensors 130A and 130B. The first and
second contact sensors 104A and 104B are sensors that detect, in a
well-known manner such as capacitance type of method, whether
contact occurs. In this case, the determiner 112 determines, by the
first and second contact sensors 104A and 104B, whether the
abutment 103 of the image capturing device 100 contacts the
observation target R. The image capturing controller 113 sets the
image capturer 120 to capture an image in the first image capturing
mode when a determination is made that the abutment 103 does not
contact the observation target R, and sets the image capturer 120
to capture an image in the second image capturing mode when a
determination is made that the abutment 103 contacts the
observation target R. The image capturing device 500 may include at
least one contact sensor, and may include three or more contact
sensors. With a single contact sensor included, a determination can
be made that the contact occurs. This can make the structure of the
device simple. When three or more contact sensors are included, a
more precise determination can be made as to whether the device is
oriented properly.
The aforementioned embodiments describe examples in which the image
capturing devices 100, 300, 400, and 500 transmit data indicating
the captured image to the terminal device 200, and the image is
displayed on the terminal device 200. The image capturing devices
100, 300, 400, and 500 may include a display and display the image
on the display.
A main part of the transmission and the image capturing process
performed by the image capturing devices 100, 300, 400, and 500,
and the terminal device 200, which include the CPU, the RAM, and
the ROM, may be realized not by a dedicated system, but can be
executed using a general personal digital assistant (a smartphone,
a tablet personal computer (PC), etc.), a personal computer, or the
like, without use of a dedicated system. For example, an
information terminal that executes the aforementioned processes may
be realized by storing a computer program for executing the
aforementioned operations in a computer-readable recording medium,
such as a flexible disc, a compact disc read only memory (CD-ROM),
a digital versatile disc read only memory (DVD-ROM), for
distribution and installing the computer program into the personal
digital assistant or the like. An information processing device may
be configured, for example, by the general personal digital
assistant or the like downloading the computer program stored in a
storage included in a server device on a communication network,
such as the Internet.
For example, in a case in which the functions of the image
capturing devices 100, 300, 400, and 500, and the terminal device
200 are shared by an operating system (OS) and an application
program or performed in cooperation between the OS and the
application program, just the application program of those may be
stored in a recording medium or a storage device.
The computer program may be superimposed on a carrier wave, and
then may be distributed via a communication network. For example,
this computer program may be posted to a bulletin board system
(BBS) on a communication network, and may be distributed via the
network. Then the computer program may be started and executed
under control of an OS in the same manner as other application
programs to execute the aforementioned processes.
The foregoing describes some example embodiments for explanatory
purposes. Although the foregoing discussion has presented specific
embodiments, persons skilled in the art will recognize that changes
may be made in form and detail without departing from the broader
spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the specification
and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a
restrictive sense. This detailed description, therefore, is not to
be taken in a limiting sense, and the scope of the invention is
defined only by the included claims, along with the full range of
equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
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